Life

There are many things going on.

House
Summer is on its way and therefore, I am getting my garden ready.
I will follow up with some adorable seedling photos at some point.

Life
My husband and I are trying to get pregnant.  No luck so far.
What is ironic (and possibly self-fulfilling fate) is that I always figured something might be "wrong" with me in the area of reproduction, but deep down I always thought "not me".  Unfortunately, I have PCOS and I am anovulatory (no ovulation at all).  I'm in my first "cycle" of Provera/Clomid, not very much fun, really.  It seems on my first dose, that I did not ovulate, so we try again.
I'd like to say that this blog should be about happy things only, but as this is such a major part of my life, I cannot ignore it.

Craft
As per my usual, I have many projects ongoing.  But there is one that I recently finished.
The pattern is Crochargosy (ravelry)

Although the pattern is great, may I recommend using acrylic yarn.  As this pattern is prone to extreme curling at the edges.  Above you can see this.  This is blocked already, severly.  Unfortunately, it still curls.  My advice is to use a yarn that you can "kill" with heat/steam.
This pattern is great, it seems a little wonky at first, but power through, because it was FAST to make.

My next post I will talk about the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival (want to get my pictures on my computer).
Then, maybe a brief picture foray into our Anniversary trip to Napa, CA.
I also have another free pattern to share....

Fingerless Gloves for Men - free pattern

I wanted to make a Christmas present for a friend of mine.  A male friend.  He always says that his hands are cold when he's on the computer and gloves are impossible to wear while needing to type.

I decided a pair of fingerless gloves would be perfect.  I searched around and couldn't find any, for men, that are long and come to the middle knuckle.  I thought about making a pair for women and just making them longer, but I realized that man hands are quite different than woman hands and I proceeded to force my husband to submit to much hand measuring and trying-on of these gloves.

Here is the final version.
Ravel It!

One size
Materials:
I Hook
Cotton Classic Tahki Stacy Charles or any worsted weight (Please note: this is a little thinner than some other worsted weights); 2 skeins, 100g/216 yds
Mid forearm at ~9” circumference.
Notes: These are to fit a man’s forearm and hand. I’ve noticed that this is distinctly different than the way mitts need to fit women. These are interchangeable in terms of left hand versus right hand.
Ch. 35, join with a sl st to form a ring.
Rnd 1: ch.2 (counts as first hdc now and throughout), hdc in each chain around, sl st to top of chain 2
Rnd 2: Ch. 2 hdc in each st around, sl st into top of chain 2
Rnd 3: Repeat round 2
Rnd 4: Ch. 1, sc in same st and in each st around, join with sl st to first sc
Rnd 5-6 : Repeat round 2
Rnd 7 -10: Repeat round 4
Rnd 11: Ch. 1, sc in same st, (sc in next 10 sc, sc2tog) 2 times, sc around, sl st to first sc
Rnd 12: repeat round 4
Continue to repeat round 4 until desired length (to wrist).
The pair I made had approximately 2.5” of the sc part.
Next 5 rnds: repeat round 2
Next rnd: ch 2, (hdc in next 10 sts, 2 hdc in next stitch) 2 times, hdc around, sl st to top of chain 2
Next 4 rnds: repeat round 2
Thumb
Chain 5, skip next 11 sts and sl st to next st, leave rest of sts unworked and turn to work on thumb.
Rnd 1: Ch 2, hdc in each st around, join with sl st to top of chain 2
Rnd 2-3: repeat rnd 1, finish off.
Attach yarn to juncture where chaining for thumb, ch 1,sc in same spaced, sc along bottom edge of chains, when reaching the hdc edge, hdc around and sl st to first sc.
Next 2 rounds: repeat rnd 1 of thumb.
Next round: Ch. 2 (hdc in next 10 sts, hdc2tog in next st) 2 times.
Next 2 rounds: repeat rnd 1 of thumb. Finish off.

Garden Pics

As promised.

Wee strawberries.

My grown Salvia from last year:

Baby Salvia Sprouts (6 weeks old):

Winter Savory:

Eucalyptus (not sure what species):

I have lots of other plants, but the light was fading, so we'll have to do with these for now.
I plan to grow:  Lavender, Spinach, Cucumbers, Rosemary, Tarragon, Watermelon, Salvia, Lilac, Strawberry, Mint Varietals, & Yarrow

Technorati Tags: house, garden

What's up?

I will go on as if I was never gone.

Well, looking back at my previous post, I can see that my life is pretty low key.  Not too many crazy changes.

My hubby had shoulder surgery (he's almost fully recovered now).
Our floors are done, a few spots we need to "fix".
Our backyard renovations are complete (despite our issues with the landscapers).
Thanksgiving and Christmas came and went (I seemed to not get into the spirit this year...).
Officially, I changed my last name (weird).

Otherwise, we're both chugging along.

I have been knitting and crocheting, fervently.  You can check out all my projects on Ravelry.

I did write up a pattern for fingerless gloves for men.   I need to finish the edit before it'll be ready for public consumption.  Even then, there aren't any guarantees....

One more thing, this is pretty awesome and addicting.  I've joined Pinterest.  I just joined; I had anxiously awaited my invitation...
I've only just begun pinning things, but you're welcome to check it all out.  This is my "page"

The Low-Down

To start:
We are currently laying wood floors in our bedroom, upstairs hallway, and stairs.  Ourselves....!  We ripped up all carpeting, padding, and staples (what a job that was).  Blisters galore.
We are ALMOST done with our bedroom.  Now it's time for long cuts....my fingers (yep all 10) are crossed.
Here is our bedroom so far....so close to being done.....

So, although I'm knitting and crocheting...this taking up my time for now.
Adieu...

FO and WIP

Finally finished the Chloe Cardigan.  You can see my modifications here.
This project was great.  Doris Chan is really an amazing designer.
I also love working with Naturally Caron Spa yarn.

Ignore the ridiculous outfit I'm wearing.  I was too lazy to go and change.

I have a few WIPs right now.  One of them is a Bathmat for the MIL and another is a Poncho for SIL.  No pictures of those at the moment, but I do have a picture of some lace that I'm knitting.
I agonized to find a project for this yarn.
First, let me introduce the yarn.

Maple Creek Farm - Hickory
2-ply Laceweight
Pale, icy blue with subtle shading.

Now the lace:
Details can be found here

That's all for today folks.

Smore-gus-board

I know that's not how it's spelled.  Moving on.

Completed Projects:

Granny Shrug : super easy, by the way, details here

MIL Shawl - loved this, only took a few hours; details here















 Small Summer Bag; details here

 In Progress - Many of these, but I'll just talk about the latest and greatest.

Chloe Cardigan - so far so good, just being lazy about sleeves and finishing; details here

Perfect Summer Skirt - I'm still working on this one because, the weight of the yarn, cramps up my hands, while I'm knitting. I have to take frequent breaks from knitting.
Details here

There are a few other projects I'm working on, but no photos yet.

I've been living within 20 minutes of Philadelphia for over 2 years now and only two weeks ago did my hubby and I visit Historical Philly.  I've never seen the Liberty Bell or been down to Old City.  We decided that I must have this experience and off we went.

I have many other photos, but this is the gist of what we got to see.  If you've never been, I highly recommend it.  Greatest thing, most of the attractions are free.  You just need to get there early enough for tickets to tour the old government building.
We also stopped for lunch at a place called National Mechanics.
Very cool.
Here is the exterior of the building:

Here are a few shots of the inside, as well as our drinks....I really had a mimosa.....